Self-hosted alternatives to GitHub
Private repos are free, but CI minutes, Actions and org features are not — and it's all one acquisition away from changing.
Below are 5 open-source projects that cover the same ground, each scored 0–100 on how actively it is actually maintained — commit volume, release cadence and recent trend. 2 of the 5 are currently rated healthy or better. Ordering reflects that score, not sponsorship.
| Project | Health | Activity (11 mo) | Stars | Licence | Last release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gitea Git with a cup of tea! Painless self-hosted all-in-one software development service, including Git hosting, co | Thriving · 91 | 58k | MIT | 29 Aug 2026 | |
| OneDev All-In-One DevOps Platform. With Git Management, Issue Tracking, and CI/CD. Simple yet Powerful. | Healthy · 80 | 15k | MIT | 23 Sept 2026 | |
| Gogs Painless self-hosted Git Service written in Go. | Steady · 66 | 48k | MIT | 31 Jan 2026 | |
| GitLab Self Hosted Git repository management, code reviews, issue tracking, activity feeds and wikis. | Unrated | — | MIT | 16 Apr 2026 | |
| Forgejo A lightweight software forge focused on scaling, federation, and privacy (fork of Gitea). | Unrated | — | MIT | — |
How these were picked
Every project listed here is open source and can run entirely on hardware you control. We start from the categories that match GitHub's job — then rank by health score so that a popular-but-abandoned project never appears above a smaller one that is actively shipping. The scoring method is documented in full.
The scores are recomputed from repository data on every rebuild, so this page reflects the state of these projects as of 1 Oct 2026 — not the day it was written.
Gitea
Git with a cup of tea! Painless self-hosted all-in-one software development service, including Git hosting, code review, team collaboration, package registry and CI/CD.
Best fit: Teams and individuals who want a complete, self-hosted code management and collaboration platform without the resource demands of heavier enterprise alternatives.
Worth knowing: It requires significant ongoing management for upgrades, backups, and user access control, and it overlaps heavily with more established self-hosted Git solutions.
OneDev
All-In-One DevOps Platform. With Git Management, Issue Tracking, and CI/CD. Simple yet Powerful.
Best fit: It is a good fit for teams looking for an all-in-one alternative to larger developer platforms who want to host their own source code and build pipelines together.
Worth knowing: The project lacks visible recent commit activity and release tags in the provided data, meaning you should carefully evaluate its long-term maintenance status before adopting it for critical workflows.
Gogs
Painless self-hosted Git Service written in Go.
Best fit: It is well-suited for developers who want a lightweight alternative to larger platforms for hosting Git repositories on personal or small-scale infrastructure.
Worth knowing: It overlaps heavily with better-known alternatives like Gitea and GitLab, meaning you should consider whether the specific ecosystem or community size meets your long-term requirements.
GitLab
Self Hosted Git repository management, code reviews, issue tracking, activity feeds and wikis.
Best fit: Development teams wanting a comprehensive, self-hosted workspace to manage source code and track project tasks on their own infrastructure.
Worth knowing: Deploying and maintaining an all-in-one software development platform of this scale typically demands significant server resources and ongoing operational overhead.
Forgejo
A lightweight software forge focused on scaling, federation, and privacy (fork of Gitea).
Best fit: It suits administrators seeking a lightweight alternative to larger forges for managing Git repositories and team workflows on private hardware.
Worth knowing: As a fork of Gitea, its exact divergence and long-term maintenance path relative to its parent project require careful evaluation before adoption.